Boy am I glad I found this site. I am very paranoid about getting ripped off (I work as an investor, so I guess it's my job). I walked down 5th Ave in NYC and realized pretty quickly the mark-up wasn't going to be worth the brand cachet for me. A friend introduced me to a dealer in the upper warrens of the Diamond Tower at 580 5th. I thought that might be the best option, but 2 things turned me off: 1.) one of his diamonds was listed on Blue Nile at a lower price; when I pointed it out to him it immediately disappeared off the website and he insisted that Blue Nile bait & switches their inventory 2.) the other two diamonds he showed me had HCAs in the 4s; I realize HCA isn't the final word (they were GIA cut: EX) but I was paranoid he was taking me for a ride. So I'm here hoping to get educated!
1.) Recommended retailers? So far I've been looking at Blue Nile and James Allen. Reading through the forums it seems like Brian Gavin and Whiteflash are other popular options. Any other major sites I'm missing? I'm guessing a lot of these guys share "virtual inventory" anyway, so maybe more is overkill ...
Now on to the ring. I hope to propose next month to my girlfriend of 8 years. She's a 5'5" and skinny, so I'm guessing 1.5-2.0 ct is the maximum before things start looking tacky. I'd like a "classic" engagement ring (in my mind that's a round solitaire). Maximum budget is $50k but it's arbitrary (if I spend $25k, great; if I spend $100k, that's okay too). I just want to get a good deal.
2.) Color/Clarity: I was initially looking at D/IF but several jewelers told me that wasn't going to be worth it for so puny (according to Harry Winston) a stone. Assuming I want high quality (I'd say "Tiffany-level" but I suspect that doesn't mean anything), what do you think my ideal specifications are for clarity/color? Analyzing wholesale prices from polishedprices.com, it seems like E/VVS2 is in the sweet-spot of the D-F/IF-VS2 range, but would love to hear other opinions on what's worth trading up for and what's not.
3.) Other: Is it safe to assume I should stick to "triple EXs" on polish/symmetry/cut, "none" on fluorescence, and "thin-slightly thick" on girdle?
4.) Cut: This is where I'm getting really confused. Should I be sticking strictly to HCA < 2.0 or was there any chance these 4.5-5.0 HCA diamonds the dealer was trying to sell me were good? I'm debating whether I should buy an Idealscope, etc. but it seems like it would just confuse me more.
Please feel free to recommend specific diamonds! But really, any help is appreciated, I'm just trying to get better educated. Apologies ahead of time, I'm sure some of these topics have been covered in the past, but the search tool wasn't really narrowing things down for me.
1.) Recommended retailers? So far I've been looking at Blue Nile and James Allen. Reading through the forums it seems like Brian Gavin and Whiteflash are other popular options. Any other major sites I'm missing? I'm guessing a lot of these guys share "virtual inventory" anyway, so maybe more is overkill ...
Now on to the ring. I hope to propose next month to my girlfriend of 8 years. She's a 5'5" and skinny, so I'm guessing 1.5-2.0 ct is the maximum before things start looking tacky. I'd like a "classic" engagement ring (in my mind that's a round solitaire). Maximum budget is $50k but it's arbitrary (if I spend $25k, great; if I spend $100k, that's okay too). I just want to get a good deal.
2.) Color/Clarity: I was initially looking at D/IF but several jewelers told me that wasn't going to be worth it for so puny (according to Harry Winston) a stone. Assuming I want high quality (I'd say "Tiffany-level" but I suspect that doesn't mean anything), what do you think my ideal specifications are for clarity/color? Analyzing wholesale prices from polishedprices.com, it seems like E/VVS2 is in the sweet-spot of the D-F/IF-VS2 range, but would love to hear other opinions on what's worth trading up for and what's not.
3.) Other: Is it safe to assume I should stick to "triple EXs" on polish/symmetry/cut, "none" on fluorescence, and "thin-slightly thick" on girdle?
4.) Cut: This is where I'm getting really confused. Should I be sticking strictly to HCA < 2.0 or was there any chance these 4.5-5.0 HCA diamonds the dealer was trying to sell me were good? I'm debating whether I should buy an Idealscope, etc. but it seems like it would just confuse me more.
Please feel free to recommend specific diamonds! But really, any help is appreciated, I'm just trying to get better educated. Apologies ahead of time, I'm sure some of these topics have been covered in the past, but the search tool wasn't really narrowing things down for me.